Ride Journal

May 8, 2009

Friday morning found me riding north to Mid Valley Cycles in Hubbard, Oregon just south of Portland.  My friend Rob works for Rick, the owner.  I called Rob only two days before and he told me to come up anytime.  Their Dyno machine is out back set up in a truck for portable testing anywhere.  I rode the bike up on the Dyno and the first thing Rob found was that my accelerator pump didn't have a very good squirt (I hate it when that happens!).  After fixing that problem, it was time for the first run. He did 3 Dyno runs trying different jets and settings.  Rob said that it was running pretty strong with 90 ft lbs of torque and 80 hp.  I already know that’s enough to get me over any mountains or over 100 mph!  I put this 93 inch S&S engine in last year after I got back from the Redwood Run.  When it was all buttoned up and time to go to lunch, Rob gave me the bill.  The total was much less than I expected. I asked Rick what’s up with that, and he said, "You do so much for the motorcycling community, I just want to say thank you". We then went to lunch and Rick would not let me pay for their lunch.  Rick is a down home type of guy who has been in business with Mid Valley Cycles for 10 years.  If anybody needs any motor work or Dyno tuning, Rob is THE GUY!  They made me feel right at home there! I said, "Thanks and good bye" and headed south for home.  Yes, I could tell a difference in how she ran!  And I thought the 93 incher ran good before!  Rob found more!  Now I'm getting excited to be able to ride to Washington, DC for the fourth year in a row with the NVAR guys and gals again.